415: I Can't Watch the NY Times
Sigh. It's been a long month. I'm starting a new career and have no time for blogging. But to this I make an exception... this follows hard on the heels of Shane Feldman's recent blog about the lack of online captioning on CNN.
In the middle of an intense course of study this summer, I decide to purchase the TimesSelect. I love the New York Times and always have. While reading this newfound addition to my computer, I notice the Times has video. Unfortunately, none of the specific videos produced by the NY Times or posted on their website are subtitled.
I emailed their access dept., the TimesSelect people, and a couple others on their list. I'd love to be able to use this stuff or at least watch it myself.
Nope. They don't have captioning. Well, I shot back, do you have a schedule to include captioning? We'd like to do it one day, but we don't know when this will happen. Uh-huh. As Shane implies, this is getting tired. Subtitling comes included with most video editing programs, which means it's free. The only reason not to include subtitles is laziness.
I keep emailing one person a week. If you'd like to email people also, click on this link. What's really ironic? By using the TimesSelect Article Archive, I can go back to 1989 and read every single article of support the New York Times had for the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I guess it's a case of monkey say, monkey not do. But when the entire country is concerned about reading skills of Deaf people, shouldn't we get a little more respect when we're fighting just to get to the point where we have words to read? And, I mean, what about the kids?
About Me
- JRS
- ....WHO ARE YOU? I'm a writer from New York who's been a social worker, actor, dancer, teacher, and lately, a PhD student ....WHAT IS CRITICAL DEAF THEORY? Critical theory encourages us to reflect on and critique society, to look both inwards and outwards. I became interested early on in exploring one aspect of my identity, being Deaf. Thus, I tend to look at the world–both "theirs" and "ours" from a critical perspective. ....WHAT KINDS OF THINGS DO YOU WRITE? For me, writing is something I'm learning to do both in ASL and in English. In the past two years it's mostly been papers and dissertations, with bits of "juicy stuff" trapped within. I write nonfiction about Education and the Deaf Community from a historicist Deaf perspective. I also write fiction... and often it's about Deaf people.
2 comments:
It's frustrating when something so seemingly simple that could make such a difference in our lives just isn't done ... out of ignorance, or "laziness" or any other weak excuse.
I'm glad to see a fellow deaf blogger blogging on advocacy issues -- although I haven't raised this particular issue on my blog, I've been posting a lot lately about the ADA Restoration Act of 2007, which you might know is meant to repair the damage that the courts have done to the Americans with Disabilities Act during the past 17 years. I know you aren't blogging much these days, but if you do write anything on the ADA Restoration Act, please let me know becaue I have been trying to link to all the ones I can find in my continually up-dated list at http://reunifygally.wordpress.com/on-the-ada-restoration-act-of-2007/
I really enjoy reading your posts...you should definitely try and blog more often, but I understand that life can get busy.
Good luck with your new career! Ciao.
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